Control Your Online Identity

When you're looking for work, there's no better feeling than knowing that a prospective employer looked at your resume and liked what he saw.

After all, a resume is usually the crux of the hiring process. A lot of people will tailor their resume for each position they apply for, knowing that incorporating the right elements could be the difference-maker when it comes to landing an interview. Others post their resume on job boards, where recruiting managers can search out the best candidate for a given position.

Increasingly, though, people are advertising themselves on the job market in altogether different ways. In the era of the WWW, employers can know about you without you even knowing it. Sometimes this is the case because they'll see your resume posted on a job board. But other times, they might have come across some information about you that you didn't post... or are even aware of.

After all, how many times have you Googled someone over the past few years? Probably more than you can count and, as you can imagine, you're not alone in this. And while it's one thing for your date to read something about you that is less than positive, you certainly don't want a prospective employer to.

the iceberg factor

This is only one reason to take your charge of your identity. Another reason is one that we'll call the iceberg factor.

Imagine the tip of the iceberg representing all your job searches and inquiries; all those outbound efforts you've made in an effort to secure work. In these instances, you control the message by drafting a resume that will strike the right chord with an employer.

However, the rest of the iceberg — that much larger piece hidden beneath the surface — represents all of the employment opportunities out there. As a young professional, you will always be sought out by others who see what you have to offer to them — even if you do not yet recognize it. As a result, you need to be well positioned for these anonymous onlookers.